Month: December 2022

Three rising rappers from the land Down Under are getting their shot at NBA 2K23.

ARIA Award-nominated hip-hop artist Chillinit, teen vocalist Sahxl, and Barkaa, a Malyangapa, Barkindji woman from western New South Wales, have contributed fresh tracks which will be ingested into the game.

The three artists were challenged to incorporate sound effects from the court into their creations — the bounce of the ball, shoe squeaks, the stomping of fans’ feet.

With points on the board, in the form of “Big Swish” (Chillinit), “The One” (Sahxl) and “Ball ‘on Em” (Barkaa), the music makers are living a hoop dream.

“I have always been a huge fan of the NBA and the video game, as a kid I would play for hours, then fast forward years later to see my own billboard within the game while I play with my own little brothers is surreal,” comments Chillinit (real name Blake Turnell), whose Family Ties (via 420 Family/Virgin Music Australia) was nominated at the 2022 ARIA Awards in the best hip-hop/rap release category.

“It’s been such an honor to work with the team at 2K and to be a part of a game that I genuinely love and grew up playing. I can’t thank the team enough and can’t wait to welcome you all to the 2K with
‘Big Swish’”.

According to reps, it’s the first time NBA 2K has engaged with artists who’ve specifically written tracks and utilized sounds from the basketball court.

The original songs enjoy a lift away from the virtual court with music videos, which feature in a new hip-hop-meets-ball “cultural” forum, Court in Session.

Helming the clips is Gabriel Gasparinatos, the music video and commercial director who has cut ads and campaigns for Adidas, Beats by Dre, Spotify and Google.

The hip-hop trio make the journey from Australia to NBA 2K23, as a wave of Aussie athletes impact the Association, a growing list that includes young guns Josh Giddey, Josh Green, and Dyson Daniels, veterans Patty Mills, Matthew Dellavedova and Joe Ingles, and three-times All-Star Ben Simmons.

The Court in Session campaign was powered by BRING Universal Music for Brands for 2K23, developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports.

2022 was a big year for music and music videos, and YouTube officially unveiled on Thursday (Dec. 1) its top 10 songs of the year.

Leading the U.S.-based list is “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from the Encanto soundtrack, which also rocked the Billboard charts as it ruled the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart for five weeks back in February.

Following the Disney hit is Kodak Black‘s “Super Gremlin” and Jessica Darrow‘s “Surface Pressure” in second and third place, respectively.

The songs that appear on the annual YouTube include streams from the official music video, lyric videos and user-generated content that uses the full official song, and cover the period from Jan. 1, 2022 to Nov. 15, 2022. Its lists are restricted to two songs for each artist or album.

It was a big year for Latin music on YouTube, as both Bad Bunny and Karol G had two songs each on YouTube’s top 10 list. Bad Bunny‘s “Tití Me Preguntó” launched in at No. 4 while his Chencho Corleone collaboration “Me Porto Bonito” was No. 6. Karol G’s Becky G duet “Mamiii” came in at No. 7 while her sultry “Provenza” hit No. 9. Lil Baby’s “In a Minute” completes the top 10.

Bad Bunny has enjoyed another massive year across all platforms. The Puerto Rican rapper was, separately, named the top artist in Spotify’s year-end list, and his LP Un Verano Sin Ti was its most-streamed album.

YouTube’s rankings don’t end there. The streaming giant also shares its lists for top trending videos, top shorts, top creators, breakout creators, ads, and more.

See the full list of YouTube’s top songs in the United States below and click here for more.

1. Encanto Cast – “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”
2. Kodak Black – “Super Gremlin”
3. Jessica Darrow – “Surface Pressure”
4. Bad Bunny – “Tití Me Preguntó”
5. Future – “Wait for U” feat. Drake, Tems
6. Bad Bunny, Chencho Corleone – “Me Porto Bonito”
7. Karol G, Becky G – “Mamiii”
8. Imagine Dragons x JID – “Enemy”
9. Karol G – “Provenza”
10. Lil Baby – “In a Minute”